禅Ashvaghosha

proverb

Life of the Buddha

Buddhacarita

Indic

Traditionally attributed

Text

I wrote the life of the Buddha as a poet. Whoever reads only the doctrine misses the body of the man who carried it; whoever reads only the man misses the doctrine he carried.

tr. Zen Lineage editorial

license: cc_by

Attribution

Lineage: Indian Patriarchs

By Ashvaghosha

Sources

  • contentEssays in Zen Buddhism, First Series

    D. T. Suzuki

No per-field confidence has been recorded for this teaching yet. Treat individual claims with the caution appropriate to the source list below.

Attribution status: traditional — see editorial policy for what this means.

1 supporting citation on record (see Sources above).

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